LOOK FOR FLORIDA STATE TO…
…Defeat a ranked team for the second consecutive game. The Seminoles defeated No. 17 Maryland, 74-71, on Wednesday night in College Park, Md.,

…Defeat a team ranked in the nation’s top 15 for the first time since March 13, 1998. The Seminoles (under head coach Steve Robinson) defeated No. 15 Texas Christian in the first round of the NCAA Tournament,

…Defeat a ranked team in two consecutive games for the first time since the 1992-93 season. The Seminoles defeated then No. 24 Virginia (99-84) on Feb. 8, 1993 and No. 9 Wake Forest (111-94) on Feb. 10, 1993. Both games were played in Tallahassee,

…Win its third game in its last five outings.

Florida State
(7-17 Overall, 2-9 ACC)

IN THE SEMINOLES VICTORY OVER NO. 17 MARYLAND
In its 74-71 victory over No. 17 Maryland on Wednesday night, Florida State was tied with or ahead of the Terps for all but 60 seconds of the entire basketball game and led the entire way after taking the lead, 4-3, with 17:22 remaining in the first half. The Seminoles took the lead on a Delvon Arrington lay-up with 17:22 remaining and led for the final 36:22 of the game.

DELVON ARRINGTON AGAINST MARYLAND
All ACC candidate Delvon Arrington scored 17 points, grabbed a game-hi gh nine rebounds, dished out eight assists, recorded three steals and was charged with only two turnovers in 34 minutes of play against Maryland on Wednesday night in College Park.

LOWERY IN THE CLASSROOM
Seminole freshman Ryan Lowery earned a 4.0 grade point average during the fall semester.

TODAY’S OFFICIALS
Today’s referee is Karl Hess and the umpires are Ray Natili and Leslie Jones

FLORIDA STATE AGAINST NO. 17 MARYLAND…
…Florida State defeated a ranked team for the first time this season,

…Florida State won its first game of the season on an opponents’ home court,

…Florida State outrebounded Maryland 38-34 after the Terps had outrebounded the Seminoles, 54-37, in the first meeting of the season between the two teams (Jan. 14),

…Florida State limited its turnovers to 17. Maryland entered the game forcing 18.3 turnovers per game,

…Florida State recorded nine steals and forced 18 turnovers against Maryland. The Terps entered the game averaging 14.5 turnovers and limiting their opponents to 7.2 steals per game.

FLORIDA STATE AGAINST NO. 17 MARYLAND…
…Florida State became only the third team in 24 games to lead at halftime against the Terps,

…Florida State held Maryland to 17.6 points below their season scoring average of 88.6 points per game. The Terps entered the game ranked fourth in the nation in scoring and had scored below 75 points only four times entering the game against the Seminoles,

…Maryland was 8-2 and was averaging 96.7 points scored per games in games in Cole Field House entering Wednesday night’s game,

…Juan Dixon, the ACC steals leader, was held to two steals,

…Florida State’s defense held Terence Morris to eight points and five rebounds. The senior entered the game averaging 16.1 points and 10.3 rebounds in 11 conference games,

…Maryland entered the game averaging 6.7 3-point shots made per game. The Seminole defense limited the Seminoles to four 3-point shots made.

THE CLASS OF THE ACC FRESHMAN CLASS
ACC Freshman-of-the-Year candidate Michael Joiner is the conference leader among freshmen in three different statistical categories and ranks among the top three in six others.

JOINER AMONG FLORIDA STATE LEADERS IN MOST CATEGORIES
ACC Freshman-of-the-Year candidate Michael Joiner leads the Seminoles in rebounds (6.1 rpg) and ranks among the team leaders in blocked shots (19), steals (26), assists (38) and points (9.3).

CUMMINGS LEADS SEMINOLES OFF THE BENCH
Junior Monte Cummings, scored seven points and was credited with a career-high four steals against Maryland, is second on the team with 260 points and an 11.3 points per game average. His 253 points are only 13 less than senior Delvon Arrington has scored this season.

CUMMINGS IN HIS FIRST NINE CAREER ACC GAMES…
…He is averaging nearly two points more (12.8) in conference games than he has averaged for the Seminoles’ 23-game schedule (11.3),

…He has scored in double figures in seven of ten ACC games (70..0 percent) as compared to six of 13 (46.1 percent) non-conference games,

…He is averaging 3.5 rebounds in ACC games and 3.2 rebounds for the season,

…He is averaging 25.6 minutes played in nine ACC games and 23.1 minutes for the season.

ARRINGTON PUTS THE SEMINOLES UP AGAINST THE TERPS
Senior Delvon Arrington’s fastbreak lay-up with 17:22 remaining in the first half against Maryland gave the Seminoles a lead they would not relinquish during the rest of the game.

ARRINGTON FROM THE FREE THROW LINE AGAINST MARYLAND
Senior Delvon Arrington was four-of-six from the free throw line against Maryland on Wednesday. His most important free throw may have come with 51 seconds remaining as he made one of two free throws to give the Seminoles a 71-65 lead. Arrington’s free throw forced the Terps to have to score six points (two or more possessions) to tie the game.

ARRINGTON WITH A SEASON-HIGH EIGHT ASSISTS
Senior Delvon Arrington recorded a season-high eight assists against Maryland. It marked the most assists he had recorded since dishing out 10 against Maryland on March 1, 2000. Arrington now has 117 assists and enters Saturday’s game against Virginia with a 4.9 assists per game average.

ARRINGTON BACK ON SCORING TRACK
Senior Delvon Arrington scored a game-high 17 points against Maryland to raise his team-leading scoring average to 11.4 points per games. He has scored 15 or more points a career-high six timers this season. Entering the 2000-01 season, Arrington has scored 15 or more points only twice during his career.

ARRINGTON EARLIER THIS SEASON AGAINST VIRGINIA
Senior Delvon Arrington scored his career high of 23 points against Virginia when the Seminoles met Cavaliers in Charlottesville earlier this season. He made a career-high nine field goals (on 11 attempts) for a career-high 81.8 field goal shooting percentage. Arrington was perfect from both the 3-point arc (two-for-two) and the free throw line (three-for three).

To pass Ron Hale and move into 10th place on the Seminoles’ all-time career blocked shots list.

A. DIXON AGAINST MARYLAND
Junior Antwuan Dixon knocked down two free throws with 15 seconds remaining against Maryland to give Florida State a 74-71 lead. His free throws gave the Seminoles their final margin of victory over the 17th-ranked Terrapins. Dixon was five-for-six from the free throw line and scored 11 points in the second half as the Seminoles defeated the 17th ranked Terps.

A. DIXON IN THE LAST FIVE GAMES
Junior Antwuan Dixon, a team tri-captain, has scored 53 points in the last five games and is averaging 10.6 points per game during that stretch. He has scored in double figures in three of the last five and scored his ACC season-high of 15 points against Georgia Tech on Jan. 27.

A. DIXON ON FIRE SINCE JAN. 27
…He is averaging 10.6 points per game and is Florida State’s second leading scorer since Jan. 27,

…He is shooting 40.0 percent (eight-of-20) from the 3-point arc,

…He has started all five games and is averaging 25.6 minutes played per game,

…He is shooting 75.0 percent (15-of-20) from the free throw line.

A. DIXON SCORING
Junior forward Antwuan Dixon enters Saturday’s game against Virginia averaging a career-high 8.5 points per games. He has scored in double figures in a career-high six ACC games and a career-high 12 games this season. Dixon has scored in double figures in 50 percent (12 of 24) of Florida State’s games this season.

CRAWFORD STEALING
Senior tri-captain Adrian Crawford, who recorded a career-high tying three steals against Wake on Feb. 10, enters Saturday’s game against Wake with a near career-high 15 steals on the season. His single-season career-high for steals in 16 during the 1997 (University of Tulsa) and 1999 (Florida State) seasons.

CRAWFORD FROM THE 3-POINT ARC
Senior tri-captain Adrian Crawford has made at least one 3-point shot in 10 of the Seminoles’ 11 ACC games this season. He enters Saturday’s game against Virginia with a team-leading 45 3-point shots made. Crawford has made 122 3-points shots during his 69-game Florida State career. He became only the ninth player in school history to make 100 or more 3-point shots in his career when he made five against Morgan State on Dec. 30 and is currently ranked sixth in school history with 121 3-point shots made. He needs only two 3-point shots to surpass LaMarr Greer and move into fifth place on Florida State’s all-time career list.

CRAWFORD FROM THE FREE THROW LINE
Senior Adrian Crawford enters Saturday’s game against Virginia shooting a career-high 75.0 percent from the free throw line and is ranked second among the Seminoles’ starters in the free throw shooting percentage category. He has made seven of his last nine attempts (77.8 percent) in the last two games and was four of five from the line in the Seminoles victory against Maryland. All of his made free throws against the Terps came in the second half. Crawford’s made free throw with 13 seconds remaining in the game gave the Seminoles an insurmountable lead.

Seminoles Sign Pair of Top
National Prospects

Florida State University head men’s basketball coach Steve Robinson announced during the early signing period that Anthony Richardson and Adam Waleskowski have signed National Letters of Intent to play for the Seminoles beginning in the 2000-01 season. Richardson is ranked among the top 20 players in the nation and Waleskowski is ranked among the top 100 giving the Seminoles one of the nation’s top recruiting classes.

“We are very excited to have Anthony Richardson and Adam Waleskowski join our program,” said Robinson. “Their addition gives us two more high level players which allows us to continue our efforts in transforming Florida State into one of the top programs in the nation.”

Richardson, a 6-7 small forward from Raleigh (N.C.) Leesville High School was the first player to commit to Robinson and the Seminoles this season. He averaged 14 points and eight rebounds per game as a junior. Richardson is hailed as one of the top “combo” forwards in the nation and is ranked as the 16th best prospect in the nation by recruiting analyst Brick Oettinger. He ranks as high as No. 4 nationally among small forward prospects nationally.

Richardson selected Florida State over Maryland, NC State and Wake Forest. He becomes the third player from the state of North Carolina to commit to the Seminoles in the last two years. Michael Joiner (Fayetteville, N.C.) and Ryan Lowery (Gastonia, N.C.) are current Florida State team members.

Waleskowski, a 6-9 power forward from Kettering (Ohio) Alter High School signed his National Letter of Intent with the Florida State program following a recruiting visit Nov. 3-5. He is rated among the top 100 prospects in the nation according to All Star Sports Publications. He averaged 17 points, 10 rebounds and seven blocked shots as a junior. In addition, he has a 31-inch vertical leap.

“The combination of the recruiting class which entered the university this fall (which was the 13th ranked recruiting class in the nation) and this recruiting class continues the influx of talented players into our program,” Robinson added. “We are continuously working to improve our program in every way and the additions of Anthony and Adam are very positive steps in our goal of becoming a better basketball team.”

ANDREW WILSON IN THE FLOW
Freshman Andrew Wilson scored six points and grabbed a career-high seven rebounds against Maryland. It marked the third consecutive game that he had scored six points or more (9.0 points per game average in last three games) and his seven rebounds were more than he totaled his three previous games (six).

WILSON IN THE LAST FIVE MINUTES AGAINST MARYLAND
As most coaches say, it may be more important to finish the game on the court than to be a starter. Such is the case of Andrew Wilson against Maryland. Wilson played a number of crucial minutes late in the game in the Seminoles’ 74-71 victory over Maryland. He scored three important points on free throws as the Seminoles maintained their late game lead and won the game. He hit one free throw with 5:22 remaining to extend the Florida State lead to 64-59 and hit two more from the line less than one minutes later. His two free throws at the 4:16 mark extended the Seminoles lead to 66-61.

MATHEWS KEEPING HIMSELF ON THE FLOOR
Sophomore center Mike Mathews played a near career-high 32 minutes, scored 11 points, grabbed four rebounds and blocked three shots in playing one of his top all-around games against Maryland. His 32 minutes was the second most of any Seminole against the Terrapins, behind only Delvon Arrington’s game-high 34 minutes. It marked the third time this season that he had played 30 or more minutes in a single game.

MATHEWS PROVES PIVITOL IN THE PIVOT AGAINST MARYLAND
Sophomore center Mike Mathews scored seven second half points (all in the last 10 minutes of the half) to help lead Florida State past No. 17 Maryland.

MATHEWS FROM THE FIELD
Sophomore Mike Mathews is shooting 83.3 percent from the field in the last two games. He has a perfect six-of-six from the field against Wake Forest (Feb. 10, 15 points) and was four-of-six from the field against Maryland (Feb. 14, 11 points). He is shooting twice as well from the field in the last two games than he did through the first 21 games of the season.

NIGEL DIXON’S STATISTICAL IMPROVEMENT
Sophomore Nigel Dixon, who has played nearly twice as many minutes this season (343) as he played during his freshman season (178), enters Saturday’s game against Virginia averaging a career-high 7.2 points and a career-high 5.0 rebounds. He has increased his statistics in every category and has started a career-high 15 games this season.